


Side Effects

by TheFreakWithTheWings



Series: Side Effects [1]
Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Angel!Jace, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy References, Multi, Post CoLS
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-20
Updated: 2014-05-14
Packaged: 2018-01-20 03:51:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 18,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1495531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFreakWithTheWings/pseuds/TheFreakWithTheWings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>...of being stabbed by an Archangel's sword.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Something was wrong.

Of course, if something wasn’t wrong, Clary would have been worried that there was an apocalyptic event on the horizon. Complete with zombies.

Clary had been at her apartment, supposedly working on developing new runes. No matter how many times she explained to the elder Lightwoods that she couldn’t just create new runes on command, they, or at least Maryse, refused to believe her. So, while she was supposed to be working on runes, in reality she had been painting. What with all the training she had been doing to make up for not being raised a Shadowhunter, Clary had been anxious to steal any time she could for her art.

She had just started filling in the sunset in the background of her piece when the feeling of wrongness had started. It felt like spider feet crawling up her spine, like her stomach was rolling, her hands were clammy, her knees were wobbly, and her head was pounding. Worst of all, though, her back felt as if something was trying to claw its way out.

Clary collapsed, the red paint splattering across the floor in a garish imitation of blood.

After a moment, the feeling faded, leaving Clary disoriented and afraid. She wasn’t sure how, but somehow she knew that the pain hadn’t been hers. It was Jace’s.

As soon as she caught her breath, Clary was up and out the door, sprinting towards the Institute.

Various scenarios ran through her mind as she went, some of them more fantastical than others.

Maybe Jace had been at a Downworlder club and gotten cursed by a faerie he had deliberately provoked.

Maybe he had seen a vampire and a werewolf fighting and decided to help. Knowing him, he had needled them until both attacked him. That was a little unlikely though, Clary remembered, seeing as he was still being held in the Institute’s infirmary.

Maybe it was another side effect from being run through by Raziel’s sword. Yet Clary couldn’t figure out a reason why she would feel his pain.

Maybe it had something to do with Sebastian. Perhaps he had attacked the Institute with his army of demons. Wait, no, demons couldn’t go on hallowed ground. He was attacking with his minions, then. Only crazy people would follow him, though, so he killed the others and turned them into zombies. Clary couldn’t remember if she had ever heard if it was possible to raise zombies, but if anyone could do it, it would be Sebastian. 

By this time, Clary had reached the Institute. She raced up the stairs, nearly trampling Isabelle.

“Isabelle!” Clary panted. “Are you alright? Have the zombies attacked yet? Is my brother here?”

Isabelle raised her eyebrows from her position on the floor. “Zombies? What have you been smoking? Zombies don’t exist. And why would Sebastian be here of all places?”

“Nevermind,” Clary was in too much of a rush to answer Isabelle’s questions. She had to find him. “where’s Jace?”

“Jace is still in-”

She was cut off by a hoarse scream. They both paled.

“-the infirmary.”

Both girls turned and ran towards the scream. They burst into the infirmary to see Jace on the floor clutching at his back, jaw clenched in pain. His hair and shirt were soaked with sweat.

Clary hurried to his side. “Jace, what’s wrong?”

His only reply was a low, agonized moan.

“Hold him down.” Isabelle demanded, a knife in her hand.

Clary warily eyed the knife but complied with her command nonetheless. Isabelle deftly cut open the back of his shirt, revealing Jace’s angry red back.

Clary gasped in sympathy, still able to feel a phantom trace of her earlier pain. The skin of his back look as if it was stretched tight as something tried to break through.

Bloody cracks began to appear between his shoulder blades, rapidly spreading. Jace’s hands scratched at his back, tearing the cracks wider, allowing glimpses of white to be seen. Clary and Isabelle pinned his hands to his side, and he thrashed in an attempt to free himself.

Finally, the thing under his skin broke free, and Jace collapsed into unconsciousness.

Isabelle’s knife tumbled from her fingers to the floor with a thump that echoed in the sudden silence.

Clary sucked in an awed breath, unable to look away from Jace and the things sprouting from his back.

Lying limply across his body was a pair of bloody white wings.


	2. Chapter 2

Isabelle reached down to touch one of Jace’s new wings, but Clary snatched her hand back before she could. “Wait.”

“For what, an invitation?” Isabelle asked.

“No, I just thought it might be painful for him.” She stammered.

“Why would it be?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because of all the blood.” Clary pointed out.

Isabelle glanced down at Jace and grimaced. His wings had pushed their way out of his back quite forcefully, which had resulted in blood splattering everywhere.

“I’ll never be able to get this out of my clothes.” Isabelle said, looking at her clothes with a sorrowful look on her face.

Clary gaped at her. “Jace has grown wings and you’re upset about your clothes! What is wrong with you?” She shouted.

Isabelle’s eyes widened. “Whoa, Clary, calm down. I just figured that since he was unconscious there wasn’t really anything we could do. Besides, these are my favorite pants.”

“Oh,” Clary deflated. “We could at least get him up on a bed. The floor looks a little uncomfortable.”

Isabelle chuckled. “Yeah, he’d throw a tantrum if he woke up on the floor.”

Clary snickered before she spoke. “I’ll take his legs if you can get his upper body.”

Isabelle nodded absently and carefully maneuvered around Jace, being careful not to step on any of the larger blood splatters. Clary bent down to grab him around the knees, and Isabelle took his shoulders.

“On three,” Isabelle said. “One, two, three.” They both heaved his senseless body up and onto the bed, panting after they released him.

“Those wings must have added another twenty pounds or so.” Clary observed.

“Nah,” Isabelle panted. “He’s always been this heavy. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve had to carry him home after demon hunting.”

Clary snorted in amusement. “So what do we do now?”

“I have no clue,” Isabelle replied. “This has never happened before.”

“Really?”

“Well, sometimes a Shadowhunter would get cursed with butterfly wings or a tail, but those were barely more than illusions and disappeared after a day or so. These look more real. Probably a more delayed side effect from being stabbed by Glorious.”

Clary raised her eyebrows. “It sounds like you have some experience with the almost illusions.”

“You can do a lot of kinky things with a tail.” Isabelle said with a sly grin.

Clary eyed her warily, but her phone rang before she could reply. She glanced down at it and saw that it was Simon who was calling.

“Aw, crap.” she groaned.

“Who is it?”

“Simon. I was supposed to meet him at a coffee shop for a poetry reading after I finished working on runes.” She flipped open her phone. “Hello?”

“Where are you? You were supposed to be here ten minutes ago.” Simon asked. She could hear the faint murmur of people’s voices in the background.

“Something happened. I’m at the Institute.” Clary responded, absently watching Isabelle retrieve her knife from where she had dropped it and stowing it back somewhere beneath her clothes.

Simon was silent for a moment. “Is it Sebastian?”

“No, thank the Angel. Jace had a delayed reaction to Glorious.”

She heard him suck in a breath through the phone. “How bad is it?”

“There’s a lot of blood, but he’s not bleeding any longer. He’s unconscious right now.” Clary sat down on the bed next to Jace, fondly running a hand through his hair.

“Are you okay?” Simon asked quietly.

Clary drew in a deep breath and let it out before answering. “Yeah, I’m fine. I need to change, though. Could you come pick me up? I’ll tell you more about it on our way home.”

“Yeah, sure. See you in a bit.” he said before he hung up.

Clary slipped her phone into her pocket and stood up to leave. She looked back at Jace one more time, silently promising him that she would be back. Her mind flashed back to what his face had looked like earlier, screwed up in agony. She was glad that he was peaceful now, his face calm despite the streaks of blood beginning to dry.

She crept out of the infirmary, running into Isabelle with a wet towel in her hand.

“I’m going to meet Simon in a couple of minutes.” she said.

“Alright.” Isabelle replied before she hurried into the infirmary.

Clary walked down the hall, not noticing where she was going, consumed with worry for Jace. Would he be okay with his wings? Would he change even more? Was he still human anymore? Would he wake up any time soon?

She had reached the end of the hall when the Institute’s alarm began to sound.


	3. Chapter 3

Isabelle was startled from her position on the floor, where she had been cleaning up Jace’s blood, by the Institute’s alarm. She cursed under her breath as she sprang to her feet. 

Aside from Clary and Jace, she was the only one currently in the Institute. All of the adults were upstate, investigating a surge in demonic activity, which, she realized, had likely been faked in order to leave the Institute as understaffed as possible. Alec was in a bar somewhere, moping about his breakup with Magnus. Jace was unconscious, so she was the only one left to protect the Institute. Well, Clary was still here, but frankly she just wasn’t quite up to par with only a year of training under her belt.

She sprinted towards the armory, a pair of knives in her hands in case the intruders had gotten inside already. While she always carried a full set of knives with her at all times along with her trusty whip, Isabelle knew that these demons were powerful, strong enough not to be driven back by the hallowed ground on which the Institute was built. So, she needed a better weapon, like a sword, or maybe a mace. Something big and powerful.

She threw open the doors of the armory and stopped in shock. Alec was standing there, completely sober, strapping a sword onto his back. His eyes were red, as if he had been crying, and dark purple bags stood out in sharp contrast to his pale skin, but there was something in his eyes, a spark that had been missing since Magnus had left him. Her brother was back.

“It’s zombies.”

“What, no ‘Hello Isabelle, nice to see you when I’m not completely smashed.’?” she asked, grinning as she picked up her own sword.

He grinned wryly at her. “No time, sorry. Zombies are attacking.”

“Zombies don’t exist, Alec.” Isabelle pointed out as they ran out of the armory side by side.

“I’ll just call the reanimated dead bodies that want to eat our brains something else, then.”

She chuckled, sure that he was joking until she pushed open the front door of the Institute and saw zombies. The laughter died in her throat.

There were at least a hundred of them, all rotting, stinking corpses. The mundanes couldn’t see them, but they must have been able to sense that something was wrong because there wasn’t a single person in sight.

Steel hissed as Isabelle and Alec simultaneously drew their swords and settled into fighting stances. The first of the zombies ambled towards them, arms outstretched. Alec sliced it off, but the zombie continued to come after him.

“How do we kill them?” he shouted to his sister.

“I don’t know,” she yelled back. “Just chop off anything you can reach.”

With that, they began cutting up the zombies in earnest. It didn’t take long to discover that if they lost their heads, the zombies stopped moving. However, there were just too many of them. For every zombie they killed, two more shuffled forward to take its place. The siblings were getting overwhelmed.

“I never thought it would be zombies that killed me.” Isabelle commented, faking nonchalance as she relieved a corpse of its head.

Alec laughed. “You didn’t even think they existed before now.” He lopped off an arm that was reaching towards him and another ones head in the same swing.

“Hello,” a stranger appeared out of nowhere in front of them, sword in hand. “It looks like you two might need a hand.” He had brown hair that just brushed the tips of his ears and light gray eyes that were practically dancing in amusement. The stranger had the markings of a Shadowhunter, but his runes were gold, not black. His sword was glowing slightly, and every time a zombie touched it they fell to pieces.

The zombies were soon driven back and destroyed with the unknown man's help. He fought like a team of five Shadowhunters, rather than just one man. Isabelle was naturally suspicious of him. For all she knew, he was the one who sent the zombies in the first place and had killed them to gain their trust.

Alec seemed to believe the same thing because as soon as the zombies were all dead his sword was at the stranger's throat. "Who are you?"

The man's eyes widened, and he lifted his hands above his head. "I'm here to help."

"I didn't ask that."

The man sighed in resignation. "My name is Jonathan, and right now I want to find out who set these zombies on you." He raised his eyebrows. “Is that good enough for you?”

Alec's eyes tightened before he lifted his sword from Jonathan's neck. "Alright. Lead the way."

Jonathan nodded at the siblings, and then he turned and ran into the Institute. Alec and Isabelle shared a glance before following him.


	4. Chapter 4

Clary was frozen by the alarm. Who could possibly want to break into the Institute? No one was here except for Isabelle, Jace, and herself. Unless the attackers had somehow been the reason behind Jace's transformation and they were here to collect him. 

She gasped at the thought. Clary knew that Jace would be defenseless until he woke up, and Isabelle couldn't protect him on her own. Her ability to create runes would be useful in such a situation. Acting on this thought, Clary turned and ran back to the infirmary.

She had barely gone a few steps when she was jerked to a sudden halt by an arm around her waist. The person's other hand covered her mouth to keep her from shouting for help. Clary's eyes widened and she began to struggle fiercely. Jace hadn't been the target of the attack, she had.

"Hello, little sister," her assailant said, amusement coloring his voice. "Long time, no see."

Clary's stomach twisted. The last time she had seen Sebastian had been a nightmare, and she had no desire to go through anything even close to that again. Her hand automatically reached for her stele, a reflex honed by long hours of training.

She was kept from reaching her weapon of choice when Sebastian moved his arms to pull her hands behind her back.

He chuckled. “Did you think I hadn’t learned not to let you near a stele? Take that away, and you are nothing.”

Clary desperately wanted to deny it, but she couldn’t. She had only truly been a Shadowhunter for a year while her brother had trained his entire life. She would never be able to fight him off and win without her runes. Take those away and she was nearly powerless. So, she did what any woman does when she is attacked: she screamed.

Sebastian cursed and released one of her hands to cover her mouth. She began to reach for her stele again, but there was a sharp pain on the back of her head. The last thing Clary heard before she succumbed to the blackness was the sound of three sets of feet, running.

-‹◊›-

Isabelle and Alec sprinted down the hall of the Institute, barely able to keep Jonathan in sight. Fighting with Jonathan, she realized, had been similar to fighting alongside Jace. They both had the same reckless style, the same lack of concern for their own safety. The only difference that Isabelle could see was that Jonathan had a glowing sword and Jace didn’t.

A scream- Clary- echoed through the hallway, and Jonathan began running even faster. Isabelle had seen Jace run, and she knew that Sebastian was even quicker. Jonathan outstripped both of them. Within a matter of seconds, he was out of sight.

“What the hell was that?” Alec panted.

“Maybe he’s a super Shadowhunter, like Jace.”

Alec didn’t reply.

Moments later, they caught up to Jonathan to see him kneeling over a prone body. Isabelle could tell by the red hair that it was Clary.

“Is she alright?” she asked.

“She just got hit in the head. She’ll wake up soon, don’t worry.” Jonathan replied.

“Who set the zombies on us then?” Alec pointed out.

Jonathan gave them a wolfish smile. “If you would excuse me for a moment.” He took off running in the other direction, and Isabelle shivered. For just a second, she hadn’t seen a man grinning at her. Jonathan had been something else.

“I think,” she began, “he might be a super Shadowhunter like Sebastian.”

Alec nodded silently, lost in his thoughts, and then stooped to pick up Clary. He gently cradled her as he turned and walked to the infirmary. Isabelle glanced in the direction Jonathan had gone in before following her brother.

-‹◊›-

Isabelle entered the infirmary for the second time that day to find another bed occupied. Alec had laid Clary in the bed next to Jace, and he was in the process of bandaging her head when she walked in. Jace was still unconscious. A blanket was draped over him, concealing his wings.

"What's wrong with Jace?" Alec asked once he finished helping Clary.

"He grew wings."

Alec snorted. "No, really, why is he unconscious?"

"I'm serious, Alec. He grew wings, but the pain was so bad he fainted."

Alec still looked dubious, so Isabelle reached over and yanked the blanket off of Jace, exposing his still bloody wings.

"Holy shit." Alec breathed, eyes wide.

"I know." Isabelle said.

"No, but," Alec paused, trying to sum up his thoughts. "Of all the people to become an angel, why Jace? He's the least angelic out of all of us."

"I don't think he actually is an angel. It's probably just a consequence of being stabbed with Glorious. Remember how he was all glowy for a while?"

"Yeah," Alec covered Jace with the blanket again. "What does it say about our lives that Jace growing wings doesn't shock me too badly?"

Isabelle laughed. "It was only a matter of time, really, before one of us became even more impossible."


	5. Chapter 5

Jonathan entered the infirmary a few minutes later, his nondescript clothes slightly rumpled and a fading bruise on his cheek.

“I need one of you two to help me identify someone.” he said, distractedly running his hand over the bruise.

“I’ll help you.” Isabelle said, sliding off of one of the infirmary beds.

“Right, I’ll just go clean up the zombies bits, then.” Alec muttered as he walked out of the infirmary. Isabelle ignored him.

The pair was silent as they walked down the hallway, suspicions brewing in her mind. Jonathan had appeared out of nowhere and managed to speedily neutralize the threat to the Institute. Even now, he could have been trying to get her alone in order to pick them off one by one. She could feel herself wanting to trust him for some reason, but she fought those instincts and stealthily palmed one of her many knives.

"So, why are you here?" Isabelle asked, feigning disinterest.

He shot her a wry smile. "You're trying to determine whether or not I'm a threat?"

"And if I am?" she asked, eyes narrowed.

“That’s good. You’re wary. You should always be on your guard.” He fell into silent contemplation. Their conversation had likely brought up a memory.

“So,” Isabelle prompted. “Should we consider you a threat?”

“Oh no,” he hastily reassured her. “I was sent here by my superior to help Jace with his upcoming ordeal. I went through something similar some time ago.”

“The gold runes are to keep your wings hidden, then.” she said, watching him closely for a reaction. 

His eyes widened momentarily before he smiled. “Yes, actually. How did you know?”

She shrugged. “You said you were like Jace, and I’ve never seen gold runes before. It was simple, really.”

“No, it was smart. I didn’t expect anyone to make the connection so soon.”

Isabelle smirked, smugly tossing her hair over her shoulder. He thought she was smart.

-‹◊›-

They arrived at their destination some time later. Isabelle recognized it as the Institute’s dungeon. The dungeon was rarely used, so to see someone chained up in a cell was disconcerting.

The man in the cell was sleeping, or pretending to be so. Isabelle recognized him instantly. Not many Shadowhunters had his distinctive white-blond hair.

“I know him.” she said, her voice shaking against her will. It had been more than a year since she first faced Sebastian in an attempt to help Jace, but she still had some measure of fear left over. Suddenly, she got angry. Who was he to make her fear him? Sure, he was stronger than her, faster than her, better than her, but it was he who was currently locked in a cell. “His name is Jonathan Morgenstern.”

Jonathan’s eyes widened and he sagged against a wall. “I’m so sorry.” he said, addressing Sebastian.

“Why?” Isabelle asked, unable to understand. He had killed so many Nephilim; he didn’t deserve their pity. “He’s a monster.”

“And he shouldn’t have been. He had no choice in the matter; his father made him into nothing more than a weapon.” Jonathan took in a breath before continuing softly. “Jonathan Morgenstern will die within a year. The blood of demons and the blood of angels were never meant to mix. He is an adult now, so they will fight for dominance and burn him out in the process. Pity him, for he never truly lived.” Jonathan turned and angrily strode away.

Isabelle, speechless, followed.

-‹◊›-

Once she was out of sight, Sebastian opened his eyes slightly before closing them again. He would have to make drastic changes to his plans. He had a new goal, a new time limit, and a new player had entered the game.

He mentally reached out along a faint, almost nonexistent, bond and began to tug.

-‹◊›-

Isabelle was getting sick of the infirmary. If one more person ended up in there today, she thought as she trailed after Jonathan, she was going to break something. Or possibly someone.

Clary was just waking up, her eyes still unfocused. Her hand slowly rose to touch the bandages on her head as if she was trying to figure out why it hurt. She clearly didn’t remember Sebastian’s attack just yet.

“What happened? And,” she squinted at Jonathan blearily. “What’s wrong with your back?”

Jonathan smiled at her. “I’ll tell you once I wake up Jace.”

Clary nodded, satisfied, until her eyes widened and she sat up a little too fast. Isabelle knew she’d remembered.

“Sebastian, he’s here, he’s-”

“Relax Clary, we stopped him.” Isabelle said. Clary flopped back into her pillow with a sigh.

While Isabelle had been reassuring Clary, Jonathan had moved to sit next to Jace. He lightly rested his right hand against the back of Jace’s head, and the gold runes on his hand began to glow.

Jace cracked open an eyelid.


	6. Chapter 6

“Wazzgoinon?” Jace asked as he raised a hand to rub his eyes.

“Are you alright?” Clary bolted from her bed to stand next to Jace. She swayed slightly, clutching her head, before she sat down beside him.

“I’m fine, my back feels a little funny, but that’s it.”

Clary felt like crying with relief. She had been so worried that Jace would have sustained permanent damage because of all of the blood, but he seemed to have healed up quickly.

Alec chose that moment to enter the room, his clothes covered in rotting flesh. He glanced at Jace, then had to look away, his shoulders shaking slightly with suppressed laughter. “It’s going to take a while to get used to that.”

“What’s so funny? And who are you?” Jace had finally noticed Jonathan. Clary held in a chuckle at the look of absolute confusion on his face.

“I’m Jonathan, and I’m here to help.” Jonathan said, a bored expression on his face. Clary figured he had probably had to repeat himself to Alec and Isabelle already.

“Help with what?” Jace asked. Isabelle joined Alec in laughter. “Will somebody just answer one of my damn questions already? WHAT’S GOING ON?” 

The Lightwood siblings quickly sobered up at the look of frustration and fury Jacce was directing at them. Clary decided to step in before someone ended up injured.

“You grew wings.”

“Way to beat around the bush Clary.” Isabelle said, rolling her eyes.

“Sorry. I thought it would be best not to wait any longer.” Clary said.

Jace meanwhile was having a minor panic attack. After Clary’s blunt explanation he had reached around his back to feel feathers. He pulled one of the wings- no his wings- around so as to get a better look at it. It felt strange, touching them. The sensation was a little like grabbing onto his arm and pulling, but with different proportions.

He stared at the feathered appendage in his hand, not quite processing that it was his, even though he could feel the touch of his hand through the feathers. It was just so weird.

He looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“You’ll get used to it, in time.” Jonathan said.

“How do you know?” Jace asked quietly.

“I’ve gone through the same thing.”

“You don’t have wings, though.” he pointed out.

“I do, actually. Just give me a second.” Jonathan closed his eyes, and the gold runes that covered his body flashed briefly before fading. The sound of cloth ripping echoed in the empty room as Jonathan’s wings burst through the back of his shirt.

Everyone stared. They had heard him say it, but hearing someone claim they had wings and actually seeing physical proof were vastly different things.

Isabelle is the first to break the silence. “Who are you?” Jonathan opens his mouth, but she cuts him off. “No don’t say ‘I’m Jonathan and I want to help’ because that isn’t enough. We’ve trusted you up to this point, but I think it’s time you explained a little bit more.”

Jonathan looked torn. He tucked his wings in close to his back and met each of their eyes, making sure they were certain. Whatever he saw must have convinced him because he began to speak.

“I told you that my name is Jonathan, but I purposefully didn’t tell you my last name because you wouldn’t believe me,” He ran a hand down his face, suddenly appearing exhausted. “I’m Jonathan Shadowhunter, and I was sent by Raziel to make sure that Jace doesn’t accidentally get himself killed learning about his powers.

-‹◊›-

Simon leaned against the gate of the Institute, a jacket wrapped around his torso to give the impression that he could feel the temperature. He had been waiting for Clary to show up, but there was no sign of her. He had seen the older Lightwood earlier, cleaning up what looked like bodies. He had been too unnerved to catch Alec’s attention by all of the body parts. 

Besides, Simon had always felt that at best Alec thought he was an idiotic mundane, despite the fact that he was a vampire now, and at worst wanted to kill him as slowly as he could for the whole incident with Isabelle and Maia. As a rule, Simon stayed as far away from Alec as possible.

Simon doubled over gasping as pain shot up from his feet. Somehow, he had gotten inside the gates of the Institute, and even now he was walking towards the doors. His legs were moving against his will. He tried to stop moving, but it was to no avail.

The pain was getting worse. He was burning from the inside out, starting with his feet, but he just kept walking. If he could have screamed, he would have ages ago. It felt like an eternity because of the agony racing up from the soles of his feet. 

Something or someone was controlling him, and there was nothing he could do to fight it. Simon watched as his hand reached up and opened the door.


	7. Chapter 7

on stared, eyes wide in pain and terror, at the person, if he could be called that, in front of him. He opened his mouth in an attempt to speak, but all that came out was a groan of pain. The Shadowhunter sitting in the cell smiled at him.

"You brought me back to life, vampire. Did you really think that wouldn't leave a mark? You are mine, Daylighter," Sebastian gloated. "You must do whatever I wish, and then I will make you forget it ever happened. An unseen knife in their backs. The perfect plan, if I do say so myself." He leaned back, resting his head on his crossed arms, radiating smug confidence. Simon would have thrown up, or cried maybe, if he could.

Instead, he was only able to watch as he effortlessly pulled the bars of the cell apart until there was a space large enough for a person to walk through, which Sebastian promptly did. The blessed bars had burned his skin, leaving an imprint that would take time to heal. Maybe it would help him remember.

Simon trailed behind Sebastian, limping because of the damage the hallowed ground was doing to his body, as Clary's homicidal brother casually strolled out of the Institute. The pain lessened the farther he was from the doors of the building, until finally the burning feeling had faded, leaving him sore.

He ignored the lingering pain, though, because Sebastian was suddenly in his face. He tried to pull away from the hand reaching towards him, but Sebastian still held him under his control.

Sebastian placed both of his hands on the sides of Simon’s face and closed his eyes. “Forget.” he commanded.

And Simon forgot.

-‹◊›-

Silence permeated the room as everyone simply stared at Jonathan in frank disbelief. It was tangible; no one was willing to break it, until Alec snorted.

“Because he was so happy to see us last time. Pigs would fly before the Angel would help us again.”

“Well, I don’t know,” Isabelle said. “I mean, Jace has wings. He’ll probably start flying any day now.”

Clary giggled, and the corners of Alec’s mouth quirked upwards.

“Very witty Isabelle,” Jace snarked. “But, seriously, why would Raziel want to help us any more than he already has?”

“I have no clue. I’m just a soldier. My purpose is to follow orders.” Jonathan said apologetically.

“Why?” Clary asked.

Jonathan raised his eyebrows at her. “You have met Raziel, correct?”

“Well, yes, but- ” Clary was cut off by the buzzing of her phone. She checked the caller id and felt momentary panic. She had forgotten all about her plans with Simon what with Sebastian, Jonathan, and the whole wings thing. “Excuse me.” Clary said as she answered her phone.

She heard Alec mutter something about cleaning himself as he left the room, but her attention was focused on the friend she had accidentally abandoned.

“Hey Simon,” she said, attempting to sound casual. “Where’ve you been?”

“Hey,” he responded. “I’m out by the gates, so could you please hurry up and get out here? I swear at least five different people are eyeing me up right now as if I’m going to mug them.” he complained.

Clary laughed as she waved goodbye to the three that were still in the room. “Sorry guys. I promised to hang out with Simon earlier.” She hung up on Simon and left the room

Jace looked as if he wanted to protest as she was leaving, but he stayed silent. She mentally thanked him, as she was getting worn out from worrying about all of the new things happening around her. The last time her life has changed so drastically and so quickly had been when she found out that she was a Shadowhunter. Considering how that had gone, what with the evil long-lost father and the demonic older brother, she was afraid what would happen this time. Who knows, maybe Satan would show up this time, claiming to be her secret twin.

Clary stifled a laugh at that strange image. It sounded like something out of a paranormal soap opera.

Simon was leaning against the gate as she walked up, nervously watching the pedestrians as the walked past him. He grinned upon seeing her.

“Finally,” he said as she approached. “If you had taken any longer I would have thought you were under attack.”

Clary’s good mood evaporated at the reminder. “There was, actually. Sebastian used a small army of zombies as a distraction while he tried to kidnap me.”

“Yes! I knew it! They do exist.” he cheered.

“I can’t believe you. I almost got taken by my crazy brother, and you’re excited about zombies.” Clary snapped.

He raised his hands in a placating gesture. “Relax. I knew you were fine because you’re standing here rather than coming up with some sort of plan on how to rescue whoever needed it.”

Clary deflated. “You’re right. Sorry.”

Simon shrugged. “It’s okay. So, why did you want to talk to me? It sounded important.”

She was silent for a moment, debating on whether to tell him all at once, or to ease him into the idea that angels were interfering with their life. After all, the last time he had seen an angel, he had lost the only thing that kept him safe from many of the more conservative vampires and random demons. He would probably prefer to hear it once. It would be painful, but he would be able to get over it sooner.

“Jace grew wings.”

Simon laughed. “That’s funny Clary, really funny.”

She just looked at him.

“Oh my gahhh.” he choked on the word. “You aren’t joking. Why aren’t you joking?”

“We don’t know why it happened, but we think it might be a side effect of severing Sebastian’s control over him with Glorious.”

Simon drew in a deep breath then let it out. “Okay. I can deal with that. It’s weird, but I’ll be able to move past it.”

“That’s not all.” Clary said, carefully watching her friend just in case he had a nervous breakdown.

His shoulder tensed as if in preparation for a blow. “What?”

“Jonathan Shadowhunter- you know, the first one- he showed up. Apparently he somehow became an angel and works for Raziel now. Anyway, he’s here to help Jace with his new wings.”

Simon stared at her for a moment, his face void of expression. He cleaned out the inside of his ear with his pinkie. “I’m sorry, I must be losing my hearing because I could have sworn you said-”

“It’s true.” Clary said.

“WHAT!”


	8. Chapter 8

Jace was bored.

His boredom was completely understandable, of course. He had just grown wings, and yet he was stuck in bed because Isabelle was a scary mother hen. Apparently the growth of new appendages involved the spilling of quite a bit of blood.

He could have gotten out of bed if he felt like it, but he really didn’t want to risk the wrath of Isabelle. She could be downright terrifying if she wanted to be.

So he lay in his bed, bored out of his mind, with brand new wings he was dying to try out. Luckily for him, Isabelle was occupied with finding Jonathan a place to stay. Out of everyone, she had adapted to Jonathan’s revelation the quickest. Jace, on the other hand, really didn’t want to think about any of that, and if he stayed in bed any longer he was going to go insane not thinking about it.

He needed to get out of the infirmary, and Isabelle was distracted. He was never going to get a better chance.

Jace sat up in bed, awkwardly folding his wings against his back. He stole some pillows off the beds closest to the door where their absence was less likely to be noticed and arranged them under his blanket. It wouldn’t buy him much time if anyone came to check on him, but hopefully it would be enough.

He slipped out the door and headed for the roof, pausing only at is room to grab his stele. If he didn’t want to be seen flying by the mundanes, he would need a glamour rune.

Jace locked the rooftop door behind him.

It was windy on the roof, not enough to make him worried, but it did ruffle his feathers. It felt liberating, knowing that nothing stood between him and open sky, a place where few could follow.

Jace quickly applied the rune for glamours to his arm. He had drawn it so many times it was second nature to him now. He didn’t have to look while he drew it, so he didn’t see the slight gold shimmer that accented the black rune.

Once he was hidden from the sight of the mundanes, Jace spread his wings. The back of his t-shirt had been ripped open when his wings had burst from his back, so the movement of his new appendages was unhindered by fabric.

The wind tugged at his wings, playfully pulling feathers out of place. It felt strange, almost like pins and needles, but also like when something almost brushed his arm, just barely disturbing the tiny hairs.

He stepped over to the edge of the roof and looked down at the street below. It was a steep drop, no balconies or ledges jutted out from the side of the building to catch him if he failed. The people down on the street looked like the little dolls Isabelle had owned when he had first came to the New York Institute.

It would be a long way to fall, with a fatal impact at the bottom. A thrill of excitement raced through Jace, setting his blood pounding with the knowledge that failure would bring death. He had always loved challenges, the higher the stakes the better, and this was no different.

Fly or die.

Jace stepped off the ledge into the night.

-‹◊›- 

Clary was woken by a tapping at her window. Her first thought was that it was a demon- her room was on the second floor, maybe the demon was good at climbing- but what demon would bother knocking before it attacked?

She flicked on her light and gasped, an involuntary grin breaking out over her face. She hurriedly unlatched the window and beckoned the person who was clinging to the wall of her apartment inside. Once he was upright, Clary threw her arms around him, and, after a moment, he returned the hug.

“Not to sound ungrateful, but what are you doing here?” Clary asked him.

Jace sighed. “If I had stayed in bed any longer I would have driven myself insane.”

She smirked at him. “And I’m sure you brand new wings had nothing to do with that.”

“I may have flown over here.” he said, shrugging.

Her eyes lit up. “Can I touch them?”

He chuckled and reached out to brush her shoulder with a wing. She lightly ran her hand over his feathers, surprised at how soft they were. She hadn’t expected them to be rough, exactly, but she didn’t think they would be so downy. It fit him though, she thought as she combed her fingers through his feathers, once you really got to know Jace you learned that he was a very affectionate person underneath his prickly exterior.

“They’re so fluffy.” she said, grinning cheekily at him.

Jace raised an eyebrow as if to question her sanity. She lightly slapped his arm in retaliation.

“Shut up, it’s true.” she grumbled.

“I didn’t say anything.” he said, snickering.

She leaned into his shoulder, and he wrapped both his arm and his wing around her. Clary snuggled into him, winding her arms around his waist. 

“I love you.” she said.

He leaned down and kissed her, silently conveying that he returned the sentiment.

-‹◊›-

Clary dreamt of downy white feathers that night.


	9. Chapter 9

Jace staggered into the Institute at dawn, utterly exhausted. His wings felt like they were going to fall off because they were so sore. The trip back from Clary’s had been a struggle. He hadn’t let Clary see how difficult it was for him to get off the ground, but he had almost crash-landed at least three times since then.

He pushed open the door, his only intention to collapse upon his bed and sleep for a month. He froze in the entryway when he heard a voice behind him, though.

“I knew you were reckless, but I never expected you to be stupid.”

Jace whirled around, tired muscles groaning in protest, to see Jonathan step out from behind the door. His arms were crossed over his chest and his wings were held tight to his back.

“What do you mean?” Jace asked, rubbing a hand over his face. He could tell the other man- no angel- was looking for a fight, and any other day he would have gladly given Jonathan a scuffle, physical or verbal. But right now he was just too drained to summon the effort needed.

“You’re weak. Flying is difficult, and you’ve been lying in bed for sometime now. You should have started off small, concentrated on getting your strength back, rather than jumping off of a roof.”

Jace frowned. He could have sworn he had locked the door to the roof behind him, so how had Jonathan seen him? His brain was too fatigued to ponder the problem for long, so he simply waved a hand in the angel’s general direction with a muttered “That’s nice,” before he dragged himself up the stairs to his room.

He flopped face-first onto his bed and quickly slipped off into the arms of Morpheus.

-‹◊›-

It was a week before Jace’s wings stopped hurting enough for him to even begin to think about flying again. He had spent most of that week avoiding Jonathan. For some reason, the angel seemed to think that Jace wanted to talk about, well, everything. It had gotten old fast.

As a consequence, Jace had spent the week at Clary’s. Training hadn’t been their main focus, although she had tried to teach him how to paint. They had both decided it was better if he never went near paint again once they had finished cleaning the living room.

It had been fun, the week at Clary’s. She had taken the opportunity to introduce him to some of her favorite books and TV shows. However, by the end of the week, Jace had been feeling fidgety. He wanted to be doing something, preferably demon killing. Clary had confiscated all of his weapons the minute he walked through her door, so even throwing knives at drawings of demons was out. It had been one of her rules: Get rid of the weapons or get out. When given a choice between spending a week with Clary sans weapons or with Jonathan discussing who-knows-or-cares what, his decision had been easy. 

They had spent some of the time working on Clary’s hand-to-hand skills, which were woefully inadequate. Jace could now say with confidence that she could now successfully overpower the majority of mundanes with in a matter of minutes if she wanted to. She might be able to hold a demon off long enough for backup to arrive with the skills she had now. Of course, if she had a stele she could utterly decimate anyone who tried to tangle with her, but Jace wanted her to be able to defend herself in case her writing implements were taken from her. 

All in all, Jace was content with how he spent his week, even though he itching to go kill some demons. So, he headed back towards the Institute, idly flipping one of his favorite knives with a glamour rune in place, to round up Alec or Isabelle for some hunting.

He stopped dead in his tracks when a sudden, intense feeling of wrongness hit him. 

Demon.

He wasn’t sure how he knew, but he figured it must be some sort of instinctual knowledge he gained with the wings. He had just known how to fly the same way he knew that the thing that was causing this sense of rotten opposition was a demon.

Jace mentally weighed his options. He could take off after the demon now, with only nine knives and a stele on him, or he could continue on to the Institute, get more weapons to supplement his meager supply, bring Alec and Isabelle along with as back up, and potentially lose the demon. His decision was made in a heartbeat.

He turned and began loping in the direction of the wrongness.

-‹◊›-

The bad feeling led Jace to an abandoned warehouse on the other side of the city. Seriously, Jace wondered, what was it with demons and abandoned warehouses? More than half of the ones Jace has killed in New York lived in them. The others tended to frequent clubs and bars.

He pushed open the door and immediately gagged at the potent stench of rotten meat. Underneath that was the iron tang of spilled blood.

It was liberally splashed around the walls, most of it red, but some of the blood was clearly demonic because of its green hue. It hadn’t yet dried, so Jace would have thought it was paint if not for the stench.

There was a complex summoning circle occupying the center to the warehouse. Jace couldn’t identify most of the symbols, but then he hadn’t made it a priority to study the runes necessary for summoning a demon.

There was another, smaller circle off to the side. This circle was occupied by an insect-like demon. The size of a small dog, it had four large mandibles and a three-forked scorpion tail. It hissed at him and scuttled to the far side of the circle, cowering away from him.

“Ssssave me from the nassssty angel father. Ssssave me pleasssse.” it hissed pathetically.

Jace approached the trapped demon, knife in hand. This seemed to anger it.

“Cowardly angel, my father will rip you to piecessss. He will drink your blood and feasssst on your marrow. Your puny archangelssss are powerlessss before him.”

Jace simply snorted and threw his knife, impaling it through the head. It twitched before melting into gelatinous goop. The bad feeling disappeared.

He glanced around the walls before turning and heading back towards the Institute.

Jace was a little worried about this “father” the demon had spoken of. He had never heard of a demon being a father, except when it came to warlocks, and he had never known them to have a strong sense of family before. Siblings would eat each other just as often as they would work together. The only demon Jace knew of that was at all fond of its brethren was Lilith, who claimed to be their Mother. Maybe this father was actually their Father in the way that she was their Mother. It was worrying to think about.


	10. Chapter 10

He found Jonathan in the kitchen, preparing what Isabelle had said was a bowl of pasta, although Jace was pretty sure it had tried to bite him a few days ago.

“I wouldn’t eat that.” he told the angel.

Jonathan glanced down at the pasta, then up to Jace. “Why?”

“Saying that Isabelle isn’t the best cook is like claiming World War Two was a small disagreement.” Jace said.

“Ah,” Jonathan hastily set down the bowl on the counter. “Did you want to speak with me?”

Jace nodded absently, wondering how he could broach the subject. How do you ask someone to teach you how to harness freaky angel powers without sounding insane?

Jonathan snorted. “It’s not that difficult.”

He blinked in surprise. “What?”

“Asking me to teach you how to use your ‘powers’.” he replied, using air quotes.

“Never do that again,” Jace said, before pausing as he recalled what Jonathan had said earlier. “Did you just read my mind?”

Jonathan’s face was stoic, revealing nothing of what he was feeling, but his wings were ruffling uneasily. “Kind of. It’s more like I get the general feel for what you are thinking at the moment.”

“Don’t do it again.” Jace said, his face stony. He didn’t want anyone else meddling with his mind after what Sebastian did to him. Although it did answer the question of how Jonathan had known about his jump off the roof.

“I can’t help it. Angels are naturally telepathic, especially among ourselves. I can teach you how to control it, though.” Jonathan said.

Jace shifted his weight from foot to foot, considering Jonathan’s offer carefully. Being able to tell what other people were thinking would give Jace power, yet he associated abilities like that with warlocks and demons, not himself. 

Jonathan was obviously able to sense his conflict because he sighed and ran a hand through his brown hair. He pulled a chair out from under the counter and sat down heavily. He gestured at a second chair and Jace warily settled into it, ready to get up and go at a moments notice if necessary. He didn’t want to trust the angel now that he knew Jonathan had been inside his head from the start. All he knew about him was that he was the first Shadowhunter, the man who had summoned Raziel. None of the stories spoke of his character.

Jace leaned back on his chair and raised his eyebrows at Jonathan. “So teach me.”

“What you need to understand is that angels have a variety of powers, usually depending on what they need. Soldiers are typically very strong, fast, and agile, Healers have a knack for healing, and so on. Some of the powers we have are more unique. For example, I know someone who can sing any song that has ever been created by humans.”

Against his will, Jace found himself fascinated. For so long, angels had only been a story, told to educate Shadowhunters of their origins, and a reason that the Nephilim were superior to mundanes. Now, though, they were a part of his everyday life.

“What about weapons?” he asked. “Does every angel have a flaming sword or something like that?”

Jonathan laughed. “No, the archangels stopped handing out the flaming swords after a Principality lost his. The ones they give us now are glowing.”

“Can I see it?” Jace felt like he was five again, asking his father- no, Valentine- if he could hold the broadsword that hung above his desk.

“Certainly.” Jonathan reached back between his wings and pulled a sword out of nowhere in a move that was clearly instinctive. The angel handled the sword like an extension of himself, and considering how long he had had it, it likely was by now.

It was a beautiful weapon, the blade gleaming a gentle golden color. If elation had a color, Jace thought, it would be that shade of gold.

And yet, the sword was clearly designed to be lethal, with a sturdy blade and sharp edges. It was a bloodthirsty blade, and Jace wondered if its joy was the euphoria that could only be achieved during battle, the exhilaration of defeating your foes and beating the odds. 

He loved it.

Jace lifted his eyes from the sword to meet Jonathan’s. “Where can I get one?”

Jonathan chuckled. “Unfortunately, they won’t give you one until you Ascend.”

Jace could hear the capitol letter on that word. “What do you mean, Ascend?” he asked, putting the same emphasis on ascend as Jonathan had.

“You aren’t a full angel until you die. If you were, your body would burn up trying to contain your spirit.” 

Jace narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. “You know this from experience.” It wasn’t a question.

He nodded. “It was one of the most painful things I have ever done. To go from flesh and blood to fire and light is the opposite of easy.”

“How are you here now, then?” Jace asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The gold runes were specially designed to keep me from burning through this body.” Jonathan said.

“You don’t have them on now, though.” Jace pointed out.

“I do, actually,” Jonathan closed his eyes briefly, and his runes flashed back into view. They were the exact same shade as the sword, Jace noted. “They seemed to be disturbing your friend, Alec.”

“Yeah, well, he was sleeping with a warlock. He should be used to freaky stuff by now.”

Jonathan shrugged and let his runes fade. “I am merely telling you what I observed. I have no clue as to the reason behind his uneasiness.” 

“May I?” Jace asked gesturing towards the sword. Jonathan nodded his assent, so he lifted it up by the hilt and gazed at it while he spoke “Tell me a little more about what I will need to do to control these angel powers.”

Jonathan grinned.


	11. Chapter 11

Clary felt bad about neglecting Simon. He was her best friend, as he liked to remind her whenever he was feeling left out. Honestly, sometimes she thought he was like a little puppy, begging for her to love him.

He could do the puppy dog eyes really well too. She usually fell for them.

After spending a week around Jace, Clary was anxious for company that wasn’t her boyfriend. Not that she didn’t love him, but there was a line that absolutely could not be crossed for Clary when it came to personal hygiene. Sharing a toothbrush was way over the line.

So, Clary was headed over to the apartment that Simon shared with Jordan to watch anime and make up storylines because they couldn’t speak Japanese.

However, when she got there, it was Jordan who answered the door. He only opened the door partway because of the various chains that stretched across it. From what Clary could see of his apartment, it was covered in signs and symbols to keep demons away.

Jordan himself was a wreck. His eyes were wide and slightly crazed, with deep purple bags etched into the skin beneath them. His hair was sticking up in all directions as if he had been constantly pulling at it. 

“Hey, is Simon there?” she asked.

“No. I’m sorry, but I can’t help you. He’s gone. They came for him. I can hear them. They’re coming for me next.” Jordan babbled, looking as if he wanted nothing more than to curl up in the nearest corner and hide from the world. Clary was used to werewolves having a certain air of fearlessness to them, so to see Jordan so absolutely terrified was worrying.

“What’s wrong, Jordan? Is it something to do with the Praetor? The Clave can shelter you if you’re in trouble.” she offered, reaching out to him.

He laughed, a hollow sound that managed to convey just how hopeless he was. “The Clave can’t help me now. Goodbye Clary.” He shut the door in her startled face.

Clary caught a cab back to the Institute, and while she rode back she tried to figure out who had taken Simon. The only person she could think of that would have a grudge against him was Maureen. She had heard that Maureen had killed one of the Praetor too, that might explain Jordan’s fear. Simon no longer had the Mark of Cain either, so he was vulnerable to attack.

She would need help of she was going to get Simon back from the leader of the New York vampires. Jace and Jonathan would be her best bet, although it wouldn’t hurt to have Isabelle and Alec along. She planned on bringing with a number of extra steles, just in case.

The taxi pulled up in front of the Institute a few minutes later, and Clary sprinted inside, shouting for Alec or Isabelle while she headed towards the armory.

Isabelle appeared while she was digging for steles.

“What’s wrong? Is Sebastian back?”

"No," Clary replied. "Simon has gone missing, and Jordan is freaked out."

Isabelle raised an eyebrow. "Jordan? Ubercalm Jordan of the Praetor Lupus? Are we talking about the same guy here?"

Clary nodded as she dug through a crate of steles. After selecting five, which she strategically placed on her person, she stood and looked Isabelle in the eyes. "That's why I'm concerned. Do you know where Jace and Jonathan are?"

"I think they went to a hospital to work on his angel powers. It's only a five-minute walk. I'll grab Alec and we can go."

Two minutes later, the three of them were running down the sidewalk, headed towards the hospital.

-‹◊›-

Golden fire raced through his veins, giving his skin a soft glow. Jace gently rested his hand against the head of the sickly child in front of him, trying to get a feel for her thoughts.

It's so boring here. When's Momma gonna be back? My chest hurts...

Jace could sense a sort of wrongness emanating from the little girl. It was similar to when he felt the demon, but where the demon was rotting and death, the girl was sickly sweetness. The heavenly fire in his blood surged, pouring out of his hand and into the girl. He was glad for the glamour runes that he and Jonathan had applied before they entered the hospital. He could only imagine how he would appear to the mundanes right now, skin glowing from within, wings pressed tightly to his back. Not that he really cared what they thought; he just didn’t want to be worshipped.

Then the heavenly fire was gone, and Jace fell to his knees, gasping at the sudden chill that permeated his body. The sickly sweet wrongness had disappeared from the girl.

Jonathan looked shell-shocked. "Do you know what you just did?"

Jace closed his eyes, utterly exhausted. "Obviously not." he muttered.

"That was a miracle. The little girl had lung cancer, and you got rid of it."

"That's nice." Jace said as he tiredly got to his feet.

"Miracles are tremendously draining. You'll probably need to take it easy for a few days."

Despite the fact that he had just had a week of rest, Jace didn't protest. He couldn't remember a time when he had felt more exhausted.

He swayed, the floor tilting up to meet him, before Jonathan slipped his arm around his shoulders. They staggered towards the door, Jace stumbling over his own feet occasionally.

He started and almost fell when Clary, Isabelle, and Alec burst into the hospital.

"Simon's missing." Clary said.


	12. Chapter 12

“How long ago did he go missing?” Jonathan asked.

“I don’t know,” Clary said frantically. “At least a week. I haven’t seen him since Jace came to stay with me.”

The three who weren’t wearing glamour runes were given curious looks by the rest of the people in the waiting room.

“Who would have taken him?”

“Maureen,” Isabelle and Clary said in unison. They looked at each other in surprise before Isabelle continued. “She’s the leader of the New York Vampires. Simon accidentally drank her blood before she was Turned, and she was kidnapped and almost killed in an attempt to get to him.”

“How do you know all of that?” Alec asked.

“Simon told me.” Isabelle sniffed.

Jace snorted into his shirt. Isabelle had been hoping to keep her renewed relationship with Simon a secret from her brother, but he could easily see that she wouldn’t succeed.

“Please help us Jonathan.” Clary pleaded.

“Of course. Although,” He glanced over at Jace. “Jace won’t be able to keep up with us.”

“It’s okay,” Jace said wearily. “I’ll just go back to the Institute and sleep.”

He could already feel the lethargy settling in, clouding his mind. He shook it off, though, and pulled his arm back from where it rested on Jonathan’s shoulders. He waved off the hand Clary offered him and began heading towards home.

“I’ll be fine, just go.” he told them as he walked away. He could hear his bed calling him from here.

-‹◊›-

The Hotel Dumort was eerily quiet in the fading daylight. A crumbling monument to times past, it silently dared the Shadowhunters to enter and seek out their friend.

Jonathan took the lead, with Alec and Isabelle behind him and Clary at the back. She was vaguely irritated at being left in a position of relative safety, but she also recognized that, as the weaker point, she would need more protection. Clary was the weak link. It was as simple as that.

Jonathan drew his sword, its gentle glow illuminating the gloomy hotel. They were quiet so as not to alert the waking vampires to their presence.

A loose floorboard creaked under Alec’s foot, and they froze, waiting for some sort of alarm to sound. Nothing.

They continued on, placing their feet with greater care.

The hotel had an oppressive atmosphere; Clary felt as if the building itself was trying to choke the life out of her. She wished for something, anything, to break the ominous silence that engulfed them.

Suddenly, a muffled thump echoed through the hotel, followed by the clank and clatter of chains. As one, the group turned to the left, the direction the sounds had come from, and, after silently exchanging glances of confirmation, crept in that direction.

After a minute of stealthy creeping, they reached the vampire.

The vampire was chained to the wall by her hands and feet and softly murmuring to herself.

“Please, somebody help me, please, please…” her voice trailed off into meaningless whispers.

She obviously smelled them the moment they entered the room because her head snapped up from where it had been resting on her chest, her nostrils flaring. A wide, manic grin spread across her face at the sight of them, and Clary felt a flicker of fear. It was a trap.

“Nephilim, my Father is coming for you. The end is here. Darkness is falli-” the vampire’s voice rose as she raved, until she was cut off by Jonathan’s sword through her throat.

Clary stared at him, half in awe and half in wariness. He was so unassuming in appearance that she had forgotten that he had been the one who had first summoned Raziel.

“There are no more vampires in here. We should leave.” Jonathan said as he wiped the blood from his sword.

-‹◊›-

Clary called her mom as soon as they left the hotel. The phone almost went to voicemail before Jocelyn answered.

“What?” her mom snapped.

“Something happened. All of the vampires have -”

“Disappeared, yes, we know. All the Downworlders are gone, and the demons are attacking in greater numbers than ever. I’m sorry, but I don’t have time to talk.” Clary could hear the exhaustion in her mom’s voice.

“Do you want us to help?” she asked, unease curdling in her stomach.

“No, don’t. Go to the Institute and prepare.” Jocelyn commanded.

“What about -”

“Idris is under attack too. There’s no one.” she said quietly.

“Luke?” Clary asked, afraid of the answer.

“He’s gone. Goodbye Clary. I love you.” Her mom hung up, leaving Clary staring at the darkened street in shock.

Her body felt numb, her mind empty. She stared at the lit up buildings, full of people unaware that their only defense against demons was being slowly overwhelmed. Those lucky people.

“What’s wrong?” Isabelle asked, breaking Clary out of her thoughts.

“The Downworlders have been taken against their will, and our parents are under attack by a lot of demons,” She swallowed before continuing. “Idris too. We’re probably next.”

The other three were horrified by the news.

Clary felt the blood drain out of her face when she realized that Jace didn’t know. He was vulnerable now too, weak from whatever training Jonathan was putting him through.

“Jace.” she gasped as she whirled around and sprinted towards the Institute. If they were lucky, they would catch up to him before anything ambushed him.

Isabelle and Jonathan followed a beat later.

No one noticed Alec slip away, headed for another part of the city.


	13. Chapter 13

Alec hesitated on the doorstep of Magnus’ apartment, his hand resting lightly on the door. What if he didn’t want to see him? Alec would understand, of course, because what he had considered doing to Magnus had been unforgivable. And yet, what if Magnus had already disappeared? Alec wouldn’t be able to forgive himself if he didn’t check.

The decision was taken out of his hands, though, when the door opened, and a hand reached out, fisted his jacket, and dragged him inside. Before he could even blink, he was pinned to the door, and lips he recognized very well were pressed up to his. His eyes widened momentarily in shock before they closed, and he kissed Magnus back just as desperately as the warlock was kissing him.

An unknown amount of time later, Magnus pulled away from him.

“Wait, Magnus, what’s-” Alec began, only to have his question cut off by the warlock’s hand over his mouth.

“No time for that. I have to explain everything before it’s too late. Now, are you listening?” He waited until Alec nodded before continuing. “Someone has summoned the Original Evil.”

“I could hear the capital letters in that.” Alec said, grinning slightly. God, he loved Magnus.

“Thank you,” he preened “I’ve been working on- oh nevermind. It’s not important.”

“By Original Evil, do you mean Lilith?” Alec asked, suddenly wary. It had been difficult enough the first time she had been around, what with Clary’s psychotic older brother coming back from the dead and kidnapping Jace.

“No, this being is older than her. No one knows how old, exactly, but I’m guessing the beginning of the universe or so.”

“Lucifer?” Alec asked, beginning to feel fear. From what he had heard, angels were in a league all on their own, and Lucifer had been an archangel. If he was wandering around somewhere then they were screwed.

“No,” Magnus shook his head. “I wish. The being that is here now is the one who first gave Lucifer the idea that he could rebel against God in the first place. The opposite of God. He has no name, although I personally refer to him a Steven.”

“Steven?” Alec asked incredulously. “The most evil being ever, and you call him Steven?”

Magnus shrugged. “My first cat’s name was Steven. He was very malicious.”

Alec laughed before the true weight of what Magnus had said settled in. They had barely managed to hold their own against Valentine, and he was just a man. Steven was way out of their league. Out of anyone’s league apparently.

“Why are you telling me this?” he asked softly.

“I’m being called. Steven can control Downworlders and demons alike, but I am stronger than most. I’ve managed to hold on until now by staying inside of my wards. Now that you’re here and relatively safe I can go,” Magnus smiled down at him. “Goodbye Alec, love.”

Magnus stepped around Alec’s stunned form and reached for the door. Alec’s hand on his wrist stopped him from going, though.

“Why do have to leave? Shouldn’t you be safe behind your wards?” he pointed out.

“I splintered them when I let you in. The demons will be coming here now, so if I go out to meet them you’ll be safe.” Magnus explained.

Alec felt as if the world had dropped out from under his feet. Magnus had given up his protection for him, so that he would know the severity of the situation.

“Why?” he whispered brokenly.

“My reasons aren’t purely selfless, you know. If I resisted the demons long enough Steven would have come for me himself. I’m just making the best of a bad situation,” he leaned over and kissed Alec on the forehead. “Goodbye.”

Then he was gone.

-‹◊›-

Alec started after the warlock, but ran headfirst into a barrier over the door. Damn it. Magnus had locked him in his apartment. How was he supposed to let anyone know about Steven if he was cut off from them?

How was he supposed to save Magnus if he couldn’t go after him?

Alec pushed that thought away for the moment, though, and set to searching the apartment for some way to communicate with the rest of the Shadowhunters. Magnus wouldn’t have told him about Steven and then just lock away his vital information without leaving him some way to share it with the rest of the Clave. Alec just had to find it.

After an hour of fruitless searching, Alec stumbled across the laptop that was hidden under a dirty shirt in the corner of Magnus’ bathroom. Why it was there, he had no idea, but he was grateful for it anyway. 

None of the Shadowhunters had any skill when it came to navigating technology except Clary and Jocelyn, but Clary had insisted that all of them learn how to use an email after the incident with Valentine. He thought she might have plans to eventually install computers in Idris and set up a base there, but he wasn’t sure.

Isabelle had taken to the technology like a duck to water, so she would be his best bet, although it couldn’t hurt to forward his message to all of them. So, he began the laborious task of typing out what Magnus had told him and sending it to his friends.

Finally, he finished. There was nothing else he could do but wait and hope.


	14. Chapter 14

Jace was woken by another person burrowing next to him under the blankets. He was immediately bombarded with Clary’s thoughts.

Jace is safesafesafe. Who took Simon? Why are the Downworlders leaving? Oh God, please let Mom be okay. Jace is safe…

Jace carefully sat up, his head still throbbing lightly. “What’s wrong Clary?”

She sniffed, sitting up too. “You know about Simon being missing, but there’s more.”

Jace stayed silent, waiting for her to continue.

“The vampires were gone, except for one, who was absolutely insane, kept ranting about her father and the end of the world. I called my mom afterwards, and they’re being overrun by demons.”

Jace swallowed heavily before he spoke. “Jocelyn is pretty tough. I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

“Idris is under attack too.”

“Oh.” If Idris was under attack, then their chances of surviving a large demon attack had narrowed significantly. They were on their own.

Isabelle chose that moment to burst into the room. “Is he okay?”

Clary nodded, and she sighed in relief.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” he asked.

“The demons are organizing,” Jonathan said as he walked through the door behind Isabelle. “Clary was worried.”

“I love you guys too,” Jace said, before realizing something was wrong. “Where’s Alec?”

“He was right behind us.” Isabelle said.

Jonathan stuck his head out of the door. “I don’t see him, and I don’t hear anyone else in the Institute.”

“Shit,” Isabelle swore, her face pale and bloodless. “Where could he have gone?”

“Where do you think?” Jace snapped. “He hears that Downworlders are going missing, he’ll immediately think of Magnus.”

“We need to go get him.” Isabelle said, already double-checking her knives.

“The warlock will have wards up, and there will probably be demons out by now. We can’t afford to leave the Institute.” Jonathan pointed out.

“He’s my brother,” Isabelle said, her voice firm. “I have to go.”

“Check your email first.” Clary said, her face curiously blank. Jace tried to get a glimpse for her surface thoughts, to see what leap of logic had led her to this conclusion, but her mind was completely blank, as if it wasn’t even there.

“What?” Isabelle turned to her, an eyebrow raised. “Why should I?”

“Alec is safe. You can check your email to see.” Clary said.

“Are you doing that strange seeing the future thing again?” Isabelle asked.

“It’s impossible to see the future, Isabelle.” Jace pointed out.

“She’s done it before,” Isabelle argued. “The day you grew wings, she ran in here asking what was wrong with you and talking about zombies and Sebastian. You then grew wings, and Sebastian attacked the Institute with a horde of zombies, which weren’t supposed to exist either.”

“That’s not the first time I’ve done it either,” Clary said, staring at her lap. “When I first met you guys, I created a drawing of Jace with wings. It looked just like he does now.”

Silence greeted this statement. Jace was pondering this new development with a great deal of apprehension. Was this just another manifestation of the experiments her father had done with angel blood, similar to the runes? Or was it something else, left over from when she had wielded Glorious?

Jonathan walked over and knelt in front of her. “I think I might know what caused this future sense, but I’ll need to see your memories to know for sure. May I?”

Clary nodded her assent, and the angel placed his hands in hers, closing his eyes to improve his concentration. Jace was watching them closely, so he missed Isabelle leaving the room to get her computer.

The pair remained stationary for a minute, before Jonathan gasped, a golden light seeping out from where their hands were touching. Clary stiffened momentarily, then slumped onto Jace, her eyes fluttering open to stare unseeingly into the distance.

“What,” she croaked. “Was that?”

“It means,” Jonathan paused to clear his throat. “It means that we can trust your future sense, my Lady.”

“What happened?” Jace asked Clary.

“Raziel was in my head for some reason, hiding in my memory of the night you died. He talked to Jonathan.” she whispered.

“That wasn’t actually Raziel. That was a projection set in your mind to protect it from those who would attempt to harm you or learn your secrets.” Jonathan said.

“Why did he feel the need to protect Clary? Angels can’t usually be bothered to help us, no offence.” Jace said.

Jonathan looked uncomfortable, as if he was steeling himself for a lie, when Isabelle burst in, computer in hand.

“She was right,” Isabelle panted. “You guys are going to need to see this.”


	15. Chapter 15

Clary and Jace both read the email from Alec while Jonathan stared at them.

“Do you want to read it?” Clary offered the computer to him.

“No, I’m not a fan of reading from computer screens. What does it say?”

“Something about a really evil guy, like the devil times a hundred, being responsible for the Downworlder disappearances and the rise in demonic activity. Also that we should call him Steven because The-One-Who-Gave-Lucifer-the-Go-Ahead-to-Be-Evil is too long.” Clary read, brow furrowed. Jace snorted.

Jonathan, on the other hand, had turned as pale as milk. “You’re sure it says that?”

Isabelle nodded. “I don’t think it’s legit, though. I mean, what kind of demon calls themselves Steven.”

“This being’s name isn’t Steven,” Jonathan said “And if he is who I think he is, then we’re all screwed. Not even an archangel could help us now.”

“Are you sure?” Clary asked “Because Raziel was pretty scary, and this guy is just a demon, right?”

Jonathan shook his head. “If Raziel was a cat, Steven would be the dinosaur that unintentionally crushes him underfoot. I’m just surprised the world is still standing.”

“How have we not heard of this guy before now, though?” Jace wondered “I mean, if there was even the slightest chance that he could get into this world, wouldn’t we have some sort of advanced warning sign.”

“The angels tried to eradicate all signs of him from this world long before I first summoned Raziel with the intent of creating a group of demon hunters. Besides, he is nearly impossible to summon, not to mention it is practically suicide for the summoner.” Jonathan said.

“Who could have done this?” Clary asked.

“The summoner would need to have the blood of angels, demons, and mundanes running through their veins. Currently, there are only three that are even close to qualifying.”

“I’m pretty sure that we’re all thinking it’s Sebastian, but could you tell us the others, just in case he turns out to be a bust?” Isabelle asked.

“The first is Jace, but his recent upgrade in status would have burned most if not all of the demonic residue from his blood.”

“WHAT?” Jace shouted. “How is that even possible?”

“One of your ancestors was a witch, and she is the third possibility. However, Ithuriel vouched for her long ago, as he was her guardian during her childhood.” Jonathan said.

“I’m still lost on the ‘How is the possible?’ part.” Clary said.

“Her mother was an unMarked Shadowhunter, and her father a demon. She married William Herondale, and it is from her that Jace received his slight demonic taint.” Jonathan clarified.

“So the only person it could be is Sebastian. The suicidal part even fits because he was going to die anyways.” Isabelle said.

“There’s just one problem,” Jace said “We need to find him.”

“It should be relatively simple,” Jonathan said “Steven’s mind is the only part of him that is able to exist here without breaking reality, and so the summoner’s body is used as a host.”

“We still have to locate one person in a world of 7 billion people.” Isabelle pointed out.

“We can find him using my blood and some angel magic,” Clary said “Because he’s my brother, it shouldn’t be too difficult.”

“We don’t do magic, Clary. That’s for warlocks.” Isabelle said with the patience of someone who is explaining a concept for the umpteenth time.

“It is, actually,” Jonathan said “What you call magic is simply the demonic form. What Shadowhunters harness through runes is the angelic form.”

“It doesn’t matter!” Jace snapped “Have you all forgotten that we have the ultimate evil on our hands? Now,” he turned to Clary “do you need anything besides a stele?”

She nodded “I need something to catch my blood in.”

Isabelle left to get her a cup from the kitchen, and Clary sat in the stifling silence. She could feel her doubts rising up to choke her, but she forced them down. She could do this. She just had to focus on pulling the runes out of her head and letting them flow out of her stele.

Clary had her stele out when Isabelle returned a minute later. She positioned the cup under her arm, rolled up her sleeve, and drew her stele across the meaty part of her forearm. Clary couldn’t feel any pain at first, and if blood hadn’t welled up behind her stele she would have thought the cut was too shallow.

Once enough blood had dripped down her arm and into the cup, she drew an iratze on her arm. She then dipped her stele into her blood and marked a new rune on her left palm.

If looked at one way, the rune appeared to be similar to the one for Tracking. However, from another angle it looked to be based off of the rune for Kin. Hopefully, it would combine the effects of the two and allow her to track members of her family. 

As soon as she had finished drawing the rune on her palm, it glowed briefly, and Clary could feel a mental tug, pulling her in the direction of her family. She closed her eyes in order to concentrate on them.

There was a faint tug that she could somehow tell led to her mother. It somehow encompassed the essence of Jocelyn: turpentine, steel, and warm blankets.

Another tug felt like Sebastian: blood, pain, and tears. There was a faint underlying sense of horses underneath that, which surprised her. She felt a little silly for being shocked, though. Her brother obviously had to have a hobby besides dragging the earth into hell.

After determining the general direction Sebastian’s tug was coming from, Clary opened her eyes to find everyone watching her.

“I know where he is.” Clary said.


	16. Chapter 16

The mental tugging led Clary to an abandoned warehouse on the other side of the city.

“I’ve been here before.” Jace said quietly.

“When?” she asked.

“After I left your house. I sensed a demon and followed it here. There was a lot of blood, and a complex summoning circle on the floor.” Jace said.

“He’s only been here for a day. That answers the question of why the world is still here.” Jonathan said.

“What’s the plan?” Isabelle asked.

“There’s nothing we can do. Steven is just too powerful.” Jonathan replied.

“Well then why the hell are we here?” Jace asked. “Should we just sit around and wait for the world to end?”

“I’ve got a plan.” Clary said, hoping to prevent violence from breaking out. She didn’t really have a plan, but she had come up with ideas on the fly before. After all, how hard could it be, stopping the Ultimate Evil from destroying the world when she had already faced down her father?

“Well,” Jace said, eyebrows climbing up his forehead, “What’s the plan?”

“You and Jonathan go through the front and distract him. Isabelle and I will sneak in through the back. She’ll have Jonathan’s sword, and while you guys are distracting him, I’ll bind him in place so that Isabelle can kill him. Simple.”

“Too simple,” Isabelle said. “It’ll never work.”

“Actually, it just might because of its simplicity.” Jace said.

“My sword wouldn’t be enough to kill him, though.” Jonathan pointed out.

“Exactly,” Clary said with a devious grin. “We don’t need to kill him, we just need to destroy his vessel.”

Her smile was echoed by three grins of relief and hope. They might be able to do this.

-‹◊›-

What was that phrase, Clary wondered as she ducked under a vampire’s arm, that warned about plans and enemy contact?

Their plan had held up initially. She and Isabelle had left the winged members of their group behind and snuck in through the back entrance. Clary had led them steadily deeper into the warehouse, following the mental tug that felt like Sebastian.

It was about then that everything had gone wrong.

They had found the vampires from the Hotel Dumort. 

The vampires didn’t take too kindly to being woken by Shadowhunters. Thankfully, Isabelle with an angel blade in her hand was a force of nature; three vampires were taken down in just a matter of minutes. However, Clary was armed with nothing but her stele and the two knives she kept in her boots. 

She reached for one now, rolling under another swipe, and she used the momentum to propel herself to her feet, her back to Isabelle’s.

Two vampires charged them, but were held back by a glowing sword and whirling knives.

Clary could feel her hope fleeing. Her plan hinged on Isabelle getting to Steven, but if vampires took her down it would never work. Clary could take her place, but Steven was possessing Sebastian’s body, with all the skills that came with it. Isabelle, working with Jace, had managed to beat him before. Their only obstacle was the vampires, and, with dawn four hours away, it appeared as if their enemies would be successful.

Unless…

“Cover me!” Clary shouted as she sprinted towards a nearby wall. Runes were her greatest asset, and she would exploit that ability to its fullest.

“What?” she heard Isabelle yell back at her. 

There was no time for Clary to answer her, however. No sooner had she broken away from her fellow Shadowhunter than she was besieged from all sides by the Children of the Night.

Clary didn’t even bother to defend from the numerous claws and fangs that scored her side. The wall and hope was too close.

As soon as she reached the wall, Clary put her stele to the steel and concentrated, mentally reaching down into that place inside her from where she found her runes. The deeper she reached, the more the outside world faded away, until the teeth she felt pierce her neck were barely even registered.

Once she found the rune she was looking for, Clary opened her eyes, which were glowing just enough to illuminate her drawing board. She traced her stele down the wall, feeling the meaning of the rune translate into power.

She focused on what she wanted as she drew in swirls, ignoring the subtle swaying of her body. In the back of her mind, concern grew for Isabelle, but it was soon swept away by her concentration on her task. It was essential that she complete this rune.

Blackness crowded the edge of her vision, and she could feel her blood being sucked out of her neck, but the rune was almost complete.

Just...one...more...line…

Pure, unadulterated sunlight flooded the room.

Vampiric shrieks and the scent of smoke and ashes clouded Clary’s senses.

Her task complete, Clary fell into darkness.


	17. Chapter 17

Everything was falling in place with Clary’s plan. Or, at least, his part was. Jace couldn’t account for the girls.

They hadn’t met anyone on their way in, although the red and brown stains suggested that there had been others before them. He swallowed his nausea with practiced ease, a skill gained after years of hunting demons. At least there weren’t any visible bodies left behind.

They avoided both summoning circles as they searched the warehouse for Steven by witchlight. The silence pressed in on them like a physical force, until Jace felt as if the quiet alone would kill him.

“This is pointless.” Jace said, shattering the crushing silence.

“Don’t give up hope. Clary’s idea had merit.” Jonathan said.

“I’m afraid Mr. Herondale is right.” said a voice from behind them.

Jace and Jonathan whirled around, pulling out the seraph blades they’d grabbed before leaving the Institute.

“Samandriel.” Jace named his blade, and it burst into light, a pale imitation of Jonathan’s own sword.

“Really, seraph blades? Those are the best you could find? Angel admission levels have lowered since I left,” the thing wearing Sebastian’s body said. “That won’t even scratch me.”

It was unnerving, seeing Sebastian act so unlike himself. For all that he was insane, Clary’s brother was very calm and collected. The thing that controlled his body was anything but calm. He was constantly twitching, as if trying to move limbs that weren’t there. His eyes roamed continually, the only part of his face that moved when he wasn’t speaking, as if he wasn’t aware that there were muscles for actions other than speaking and seeing. He didn’t even blink.

Jace was thoroughly creeped out, and that was saying something.

Steven flapped his hand in their general direction, and chains appeared, binding their hands and feet to the floor. They were trapped.

Everything was going to plan. Hopefully. Now, they just had to keep him distracted.

“So, what’s it like,” Jace asked. “Being the most evil thing ever?”

Jonathan stared at him, eyes wide. What are you doing?

Jace shrugged flippantly. I was curious.

Steven also stared at him before answering, his face still eerily blank. “Exhausting.”

Jace tried to come up with another distraction in the form of a witty reply while mentally urging Clary and Isabelle to hurry up. He couldn’t think of anything clever besides awful insults, but that was okay.

He noticed a door begin to open behind Steven, and so he lunged at him. The chains yanked him backwards, and he shouted the least witty comeback he could think of: “Your mother would be ashamed of you.”

Steven merely looked at him, his face beginning to twitch. “I have no mother.”

Then the person who had opened the door stepped through, and Jace slumped in surprise. It was Luke, and he was dragging Clary and Isabelle behind him, Jonathan’s sword strung through his belt. Both of the girls were unconscious, and Clary had a bite mark on her neck that was leaking blood.

“They killed all of the vampires except for the Daylighter, Father. They had this.” Luke held out Jonathan’s sword to Steven.

He ignored the sword, stooping down to touch Clary’s forehead. His face twitched spastically.

“She’s dying. Pity.” Steven said, before he placed his hands on both sides of her face and pulled sideways. Her neck snapped with a sickening crack.

No.

No.

No.

It couldn’t be possible. He was just hallucinating, or, or, or dreaming. He would wake up in his bed at home, and there would be no wings on his back, Jonathan would be just a figure from history, and Clary would be alive.

A distant corner of Jace’s mind noticed that Isabelle was now chained up, but that didn’t matter. None of it mattered because Clary was lying on the floor of a warehouse, dead.

Would he die too, Jace wondered bleakly. After all, Clary had been the one to bring him back. Without her, would his soul just pull itself out of his body and float away?

If only she had never brought him back from the dead. If he had stayed dead, Sebastian would also be dead. Then he wouldn’t have been mentally connected to Clary’s homicidal brother and need an archangel’s sword through his gut to free him. Then he wouldn’t have wings, and Clary would be alive. She would be sad, heartbroken even, but she wouldn’t be lying dead on a warehouse floor.

Jace buried his head in his hands and tried to keep the tears back.

Because of this, he missed the way that Clary’s body began to glow.

However, he didn’t miss Jonathan’s sudden shocked inhale.

Nor did he miss Steven’s whisper of “Impossible.”


	18. Chapter 18

She was drowning in the dark, struggling to get out of the clinging nothingness that pulled her down. She knew there was something more, something she was forgetting. She knew that it was wonderful.

But all good things had been stolen by the dark, and the bad things were beginning to go too. She could remember their names, but not the feelings that went behind them. Despair. Betrayal. Grief. Sorrow. Rage. Fear. Anxiety. Hopelessness.

Even now, she was losing the names. She was losing herself as well.

She was nothing

-‹◊›- 

A spark kindled in the dark.

Clary.

She was Clary.

Clary, which was short for Clarissa, who had a mom named Jocelyn, a father named Valentine, and a dad named Luke. Her best friend was Simon, but she also knew Isabelle, Maia, Sebastian, Alec, Magnus, Jonathan, and many more.

Names rushed into her head, sketching an outline of who she was. One was missing though. The most important one at the heart of her being.

Jace.

She loved Jace.

Jace, who had died and come back to life. Jace, who had brought her into the world of demons, warlocks, vampires, angels, werewolves, faeries, and Shadowhunters. Jace, who had grown wings after she stabbed him with an archangel’s sword. Jace, who loved her back.

The spark grew into a raging inferno, and she remembered whom she was.

Clary remembered the events that had led to her death, and she refused to accept them.

She remembered the deal she had struck with Raziel; the block he had placed within her mind had fallen away after she had died. She would get a lifetime to spend with Jace and her family. After her death, she would Ascend and take the war to another level. To keep her body from burning out, Raziel had bound her powers, leaving only the ability to create runes so that she wouldn’t realize that something had occurred. Well, something besides a resurrection.

Something was different, though. When Raziel had brought Jace back, she could feel the power as a contained fire, burning under her skin. Now, though, it was out of control. She was being consumed by heavenly fire.

However, Clary wouldn’t let her own celestial flame devour her without a fight.

She pushed back against the searing power, attempting to expel it from her mind and soul.

It was a fire, though. The places it had already touched were irreversibly changed. They were inhuman, emotionless and empty. The heavenly fire had scoured them clean of all mortal thought and desire.

It was changing her.

Eons passed before Clary gathered up the courage to tentatively touch one of the places that had been reshaped by the fire, and she was shocked to discover that it had only seemed empty from the outside. Inside, it was completely overrun by love.

The sensation was similar to a warm blanket, the smell of Jace, a blank canvas, and the lullaby her mother used to sing to her when she was little.

It was beautiful.

Clary embraced the fire, and she found that she was not burned by it. She just became more of herself.

There was excess of the celestial flame left over once she had become what she was meant to be, and it concentrated itself on her back. Six fiery wings burst from her spine in an explosion of pain and light.

Oh.

She wasn’t just an angel.

She was fire.

Fury.

Stone.

Judgment.

Rain.

Mercy.

Light.

Love.

Archangel.

And she saw what would happen if she continued on the path she was supposed to, joining her new brothers in their eternal war.

The Shadowhunters would fall, and demons would rule the Earth.

Clary refused to let that happen.

She concentrated briefly, and slipped through the walls between worlds.

Clary stepped back into the warehouse that she had left seconds and eons ago.


	19. Chapter 19

Golden runes lit up all over Clary’s body. Jace could only watch, feeling like he had rediscovered hope, as Clary’s eyes flickered open. They were glowing slightly, their normal green backlit with something Jace recognized easily from his brief training session with Jonathan on angel powers. Heavenly fire.

Not only was Clary alive, but she was an angel too.

One moment, Clary was lying on her back, and the next she was on her feet. She had moved faster than his eye could follow, and a startled expression graced her face. Clary obviously hadn’t expected to change this much either.

A disgusted grimace appeared on her face as Clary reached out her suddenly glowing right hand and clasped Steven’s shoulder.

-‹◊›-

There was only one way to remove the Foe’s mind from her brother’s body. She would have to burn the demon blood out of him while at the same time strengthening his angel blood so that his body became toxic to the Foe. Without the presence of demon blood, Sebastian would no longer be suitable as a host.

It would likely kill her, permanently this time; she could no more hope to defeat the Foe than she could God. Yet, she didn’t need to beat him. All she needed to do was keep the spark traveling through his body.

So, she concentrated her fire into her right hand, and it lit up with the strength of will behind her power. Clary grasped the shoulder of the Foe, her hand coming into contact with a patch of bare skin. The heavenly fire drained from her hand and into her brother.

The Foe hissed and tried to pull away, but her grip had become as unmovable as a mountain. 

“Release me, Clarissa, or I will kill you.” he said.

“It didn’t seem to work that well. What makes you think a second time would take?” Jace yelled.

Clary beamed at him, and six golden wings burst painlessly from her back. Her skin was under lit by fire, and the glow from her eyes brightened. She could feel the demonic stain beneath her brother’s skin slowly being eaten away by fire.

The Foe must have been able to sense it as well, but he merely laughed. “Very well then. I will not kill you, Clarissa. Instead, you will have the honor of being the second archangel to Fall.” he said as he reached out to grab her one of her wings.

She tried to sweep them up and away from him, but he managed to snag a feather. A black stain began growing from where he had touched her, slowly corrupting the surrounding feathers as well. 

Evil began to spread across her soul, ever so slowly polluting her heavenly fire. Seeds of doubt, of jealousy, mistrust, hate, and greed began to grow.

And yet, for every feather that turned black, a little more of Sebastian’s demon blood was erased. It was a race to see which was faster, Clary’s fire, or the Foe’s poison.

More and more doubts began to cloud her mind as one of her wings turned entirely black. Would this even work? The Foe was, after all, much more powerful than a mere archangel. It couldn’t be so simple to banish him from the world. How could she have been so foolish, to go against such an enduring enemy? Had she actually thought that she would come out on top?

Yet, despite her misgivings, Clary held on, pouring more of her fire into her brother’s body. It was power she desperately needed to have any hope of preventing herself from Falling, but it was more important to get the Foe out of Sebastian’s body.

Four of her wings had turned black by the time the last of the demon blood had been burned away. Shockingly, the Foe said nothing as he was expelled from his host, and Sebastian crumpled to the floor in a senseless heap. 

Clary followed him to the floor, finally able to express the anguish she was feeling. The poison that was spreading through her fire didn’t fade after the Foe was banished, though, which was monumentally bad. They had defeated one evil only to gain another. There were no archangels able to slip onto Earth at the moment either. The only angelic assistance they would get would be Jonathan and Jace, one and a half angels.

They would have to do.

Clary summoned her sword for the first time, and a flaming blade appeared in her hand. Its make was similar to Jonathan’s, but it radiated more might, not to mention the flames. It burned her hand as soon as it appeared, and she dropped it with a hiss.

“Clary!” Jace shouted. “What’s wrong?”

Rather than answer him, Clary waved away their chains with a brief effort, and Jace rushed to her side.

“Don’t touch her,” Jonathan warned. “The contamination might spread.”

“What do you mean?” Jace demanded, angrily rounding on Jonathan.

“She’s being forced to Fall, to become one of the Fallen, sometimes known as Greater Demons.” he explained.

“Kill me,” Clary rasped. “Before I hurt anyone.”

Jonathan shook his head with a rueful grin. “I can’t do that because, you see, there is a cure to a forced Fall.”

“Well then stop explaining and do it.” Jace said.

Jonathan nodded once, his jaw clenched in resignation. Clary knew what he was about to do, and she shook her head frantically, not wanting him to have to make that sacrifice. He gave her a tight smile before he closed his eyes in order to concentrate.

His right hand began to glow with heavenly fire, and he laid it onto one of Clary’s wings, the one that had just begun to fall to the corruption. The fire flowed from his hand into her wing, and the black slowly began to recede.

Despite herself, Clary began to relax. It felt wonderful, like taking a dip into a hot tub after a long workout and coming home after a long absence at the same time. Her eyes slid closed, and she added her own celestial fire to Jonathan’s, hoping to keep him from going too far.

After all but one wing had been cleansed, Clary was strong enough to push the poison back on her own. She gently lifted Jonathan’s hand from where it had been fisted in her wing.

His own wings had disappeared, gone for good, sometime during their struggle. It was only because Clary was an archangel that he was even alive. Countering a forced Fall was typically fatal.

Jonathan hunched in on himself, shivering at the loss of his fire. Clary drew him to her in a hug, wrapping him in her once again golden wings.

“Thank you.” she whispered, trying to convey her eternal gratitude into two words.

He nodded against her before he whispered back. “Go.”

She pulled him to his feet before turning to Jace.

“What happened?” he asked.

“Jonathan will be able to explain better than me. Besides,” Clary could feel her fire beginning to rapidly burn through her body now that it had been cleansed. “I need to go. I love you.”

She leaned in and kissed him before she stepped back and out of both her body and the dimension Earth resided in, bound for Heaven.


	20. Chapter 20

Clary appeared in the middle of an empty meadow. She was slightly disappointed, as she’d been looking forward to seeing the Pearly Gates, but she wasn’t exactly dead. The meadow was peaceful, though, and she could see what appeared to be a replica of Luke’s country house to her right.

Suddenly, she was standing in front of the door, her hand on the doorknob. Her wings flapped behind her as she staggered back in shock. Apparently, she could now teleport. That would take some getting used to.

Clary leaned over, hands braced on her knees, while she took in deep, bracing breaths. This was her life now. She would adjust to it eventually.

Raziel was sitting on the couch facing the door when she walked, in reading, of all things, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Clary took a moment to blink at the rather surreal picture he presented, considering that the last time she had heard of the archangel, he was furious with her for giving Simon the Mark of Cain.

However, Raziel smiled upon seeing her, his solid gold eyes crinkling at the edges. He patted the seat next to him in a clear demand for her to sit. If she had been human, Clary supposed, she would be light headed with fear. However, Raziel was her brother now, and she was certain he meant her no harm.

She sank down into the cushion next to him with a sigh, tension leaking out of her shoulders because of the familiarity of the house. Clary had a few questions, but she decided to wait for him to start because she had no clue about what would be happening next. If she had to take a guess, she thought she would start learning to master her new abilities. Instantaneous teleportation could be bad if she didn’t know how to use it correctly. 

“You should have seen Jonathan before he mastered teleportation,” Raziel chuckled as he set down his book. “Nobody knew where he was half the time. He was lucky it only works here, otherwise he might have ended up in a hell dimension.”

“Did you just read my mind?” Clary asked.

“We are telepathic by nature. I meant no offence.” he said.

Now that he pointed it out, Clary could feel a presence in her mind. An area that she hadn’t known about had sprung into being. The presence felt gold, which matched Raziel. She could also feel emotions from Raziel. Right now, he was amused and a little bit sad.

“What’s so funny?” she asked.

“We agreed you would live out your human life with your powers bound, did we not?” Raziel began.

“Yes.” Clary said, wondering where he was going with this.

“And humans typically live to be somewhere between eighty or ninety, correct?” he said, eyebrows raised.

“Yes.” Clary confirmed, her eyes widening. Did he mean what she thought he meant? Could she go back?

The feeling of amusement she was getting from him increased, and he smiled at her. “I’ll see you in seventy years or so.”

Clary beamed at Raziel, overwhelmingly ecstatic. He acknowledged her with a grin before turning back to his book.

Clary stepped out of the dimension, and back to her body on Earth.

-‹◊›-

There were too many unconscious people in the room, Jace observed idly.

Isabelle was still lying where Luke had left her, although her chains seemed to have broken at the same time his had.

Luke himself had collapsed in the spot where he had been standing. Jace suspected that all of the Downworlders were feeling the effects of Steven’s defeat.

Sebastian was lying on his front, face against the dirty floor. Jace had been disappointed to discover that he was alive, but Jonathan had told him what Clary had done to her brother before he collapsed. If Clary wanted to save him after all he had done, Jace would at least wait for her to wake up before he killed Sebastian.

Clary had dropped to the floor after Jonathan fixed her wings. Her wings had disappeared after she told him that she loved him, and Jace had thought that she had died- again. She had a pulse, though, and she was breathing faintly. Jace would have tried to heal her if he wasn’t so worn out from healing the little girl at the hospital earlier today.

Jonathan had explained in greater detail what almost happened to Clary after his wings disappeared. The former angel had given up his heavenly fire in order to keep Clary from Falling. Jace had barely had time to thank the Shadowhunter before he fainted. Clary as a Greater Demon was a frightening thing to contemplate.

With everyone unconscious, the only thing Jace could do was sit and wait for someone to wake up. 

Clary was the first. Her entire body jolted, and her skin suddenly glowed too bright for him to look at without going blind. When the light died down, he could see that she was covered in gold runes. Clary sat up, gasping, and immediately reached for him.

Jace wordlessly opened his arms for a hug, and she burrowed into him.

“I’m alive.” she said, her tone one of joyous wonder.

“Thank the Angel for that.” Jace said.

She giggled. “Exactly.”

Jace got the feeling he was being left out of a joke, but he didn’t care. Clary had died earlier, and it had been one of the worst things to ever happen to him. Now that she was back, he didn’t plan on letting her go for quite some time.


	21. Epilogue

The adults returned two days later. To say that they were shocked to see Sebastian coexisting with them without any demons, murder, or other types of violence was an extreme understatement. Not to mention Jace’s wings, or the fact that Jonathan Shadowhunter was now living in the Institute.

Jocelyn had been thrilled to see Luke, although Clary had been afraid that her mom would lock her in the Institute and never let her leave after learning that Clary had died. Scarier was that Jace seemed to agree with her. She had complained about it, but Jace had gotten mad.

“You were dead, Clary,” he coldly explained. “You were gone. I thought you would understand why I don’t want you to be in harm’s way.”

She had stopped complaining after that.

Of course, after telling everyone that she had died, Clary had to tell them how she survived. She had explained that after she died for the final time, she would be an archangel. There had also been some explanations about Jace’s new wings and Jonathan’s status as a former angel. The elder Lightwoods had been wary around her for a while.

All of that vanished, though, when she informed them that she would be unable to create new runes because of the bindings she had placed on her powers so as not to burn out her body.

“Why didn’t you leave a loophole? You had one before.” Maryse demanded to know.

“Because I was barely able to make the binding stick in the first place. Raziel was the one who created my original bindings, and before you ask, no I can’t replicate his work. The Angel has had millions of years to hone his powers. I haven’t even had one. If you have issues with my work, you can take it up with him.”

Rather than summon Raziel, the Lightwoods had decided to drop the issue.

However, they weren’t too happy when Alec announced his decision to move in with Magnus. His parents were more accepting of his relationship, but Clary got the impression that they weren’t ready to let their eldest son go.

It was the issue of Sebastian, though, that prompted the most debate. The demon blood had been making him insane, so without it he was able to feel the full weight of his actions. He didn’t talk much, but he had discovered that, when Clary had boosted his angel blood, she had given him some powers. He was able to heal most minor injuries, but he specialized in contagious diseases. They discovered this on a trip to the hospital that Jace had taken to hone his own ability to heal.

The Lightwoods wanted him to be locked up in the Silent City forever. Jocelyn wanted to keep him away from everyone because he had just been possessed by the Ultimate Evil. Jace and Clary didn’t want anything to do with him. Jonathan believed that Sebastian should be left to do whatever he chose. 

Sebastian seemed to agree with Jonathan, because three days after the adults came back he left, leaving no indication to where he was going except for a series of books describing diseases from Africa. They had alerted the Shadowhunters based in Africa that he might be headed in their direction, but done nothing more.

Maryse and Robert had been upset when they discovered that Isabelle had resumed her relationship with Simon, but Isabelle had brushed aside their concerns.

Life would never truly be normal, but normal was overrated anyways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's all. There are, however, three more short stories in this series.  
> Also, thank god that AP testing is over. Four tests in a week leads to brain mush.


End file.
